Pune Police on Monday reached the house of trainee IAS officer Puja Khedkar in connection with a case against her mother for threatening farmers with a pistol. Cops said that the family is on the run and three probe teams have been formed to trace them.
A video of Manorama Khedkar, Puja Khedkar’s mother, threatening a group of farmers in Pune emerged last week. An FIR was registered against her based on a complaint by one of the farmers under various sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Indian Arms Act.
This one-year-old video came up amid allegations of power misuse and OBC quota abuse by Puja Khedkar, a trainee IAS officer.
The police are searching for Manorama and Dilip Khedkar, but they are not at their residence in Baner, according to sources. Their phones are also switched off.
“The accused are on the run. We are trying to contact them, but they are not reachable as their phones are off. We had also tried to reach their residence, but they are not available, and the residence is locked. We will try to reach them again today,” sources said.
The officials pointed out that the family is not cooperating with the investigation and added that an investigation team will be formed to trace the family.
“Multiple teams, including officers from the Local Crime Branch and the local police station, are searching for them in Pune and nearby locations where they have farmhouses and other residences. If found, we will question them and take appropriate action based on their responses," the police sources added.
Meanwhile, the police on Sunday issued a show cause notice to Manorama asking why her gun licence should not be revoked.
